I love reviews - but can you just send them once? Getting 20+ identical
reviews from the same person is kind of freaky.
Oh - and for the people who are desperate to get to the Sophia/Luke confrontation, it's coming okay? I'm trying to build up dramatic tension here. To quote the Guinness adverts - good things (hopefully) come to those who wait.
There will be a short delay over the weekend as I don't have access at home. See you in a few days. Thanks again - Sigma
Chapter 9
As she had expected they arrived exactly on time. One of the things she had always admired about Matt Donner was his exactitude, so in contrast with her own impetuous nature. And it was in part due to that admiration that she was allowing this meeting to go ahead in the first place. She stopped in place and smoothed her skirt, a brief flash of unwarranted nerves causing her to frown in irritation. Unfinished business always grated. Putting on her most polished smile, she went to greet her guests.
Twenty minutes later she was feeling twice as ruffled and four times as stressed.
"I still can't believe this."
"What is it you can't believe, Viv? Seems pretty straightforward to me."
She turned on the Pack Keeper in irritation.
"This! This whole thing! She, " she gestured abruptly to a poised Sophia, who took a sip of her coffee in obvious impatience, "comes back, after 16 years away, and tell me that firstly she has a daughter who is a, a SEER, of all things."
She put her hands on her hips and glared down at the offending teenager, who gulped and felt the urge to hide behind her Mom until this was all over. This Vivian lady was scary! She breathed out in relief as the focus of that fury turned back to Sherman.
"And you. Sherman. Keeper of the Chronicles. Keeper of the Pack. And for all the time I was Pack leader, you neglected to mention this little fact!?"
"Mention what, Viv?"
"Oh well I don't know. Perhaps the fact that we had a possible seer in our midst. Something we've not had the advantage of , for hhmmm - 250 years? Oh yeah - and that the aforementioned Seer has been seeing portents of our destruction for the LAST TEN YEARS!!"
She glared at him. He merely shrugged, not intimidated.
" I knew it wasn't coming for another few years. And what's the point in worrying about something until you can do something to stop it?"
Vivian just kept glaring at him, eyes narrowed in disgust. Dammed irritating, secretive, blockhead trickster. Sometimes she thought his mother must have been a Coyote.
There was the sound of a throat clearing, and Vivian switched her focus to Matt Donner, who had been mostly sitting in silence for the last twenty minutes.
"Sherman does have a point. I mean - Viv, what would you have done if you had known about it when you were Alpha? What could you have done? Dragged Sophia and Cat back here and put them under house arrest?"
She just stared at him for a moment, before her legs abruptly went weak on her and she collapsed onto the sofa.
"And anyway, I think my daughter might have had something to say about that."
Sophia looked up from her coffee and spoke directly to Vivian for the first time since this farce had begun, her face carefully blank.
"I can guarantee that would have been the case. The only reason we are back now, is because Sherman believes it may be near the foretold time."
"They need to be here Viv. They're a major part of this. In fact I would say they are pivotal to our success or - well, destruction I suppose." The old Keeper fixed his ex-leader with Coyote's inscrutable eye.
Suddenly Vivian just wanted to be anywhere else, away from all this, lying on a beach somewhere, drinking a Martini. God what she would give for Willard to be here, so she could just hand this entire mess over to him. With a sigh she leaned back into the cushions.
"Well, I suppose if we have to deal, we have to. Although you," she pointed a finger at Sherman, "have a lot of explaining to."
He smiled at her blandly.
"And I suppose Sophia and Catriona had better move in here for safe keeping. We don't want to take any chances."
"No."
The bald statement broke the silence. Three heads turned to the couch where Sophia had very carefully put down her coffee cup before rising. Vivian frowned.
"What do you mean 'No'? I outrank you child, and you'll do as I say."
The younger woman breathed in deeply at the unthinking arrogance in the other's tone. Sherman and Matt looked from one to the other like spectators at a tennis match. This ought to be good.
"I said No, Vivian. And I meant exactly what I said. My daughter and I will be staying where we are, in my Father's house. We will be also leaving the town when we require and coming back when we wish. There will be no 'protection' detail. No removal of spark plugs from my car, no accidental problems with our phone lines. I know all the tricks and I will be - upset, if anything should happen to either of us or my father, from anyone within the Pack".
Vivian looked as if she had been hit over the head with a brick.
"How dare you?! Do you realise who I am?"
Sophia looked down on the older woman, noticing the streaks of silver in the golden hair, the fine lines around eyes and mouth that hadn't been there the last time they had seen each other.
"Of course I know who you are. You are the Alpha female of the Wolf Lake Pack. And if I was a denizen of the Wolf Lake Pack I would owe you my obedience. But I'm not. And I have not been for 16 years, not since you and your son essentially forced me to leave. So I owe you no duty - of obedience or submission. You are not my Alpha, Vivian. You made sure of that. Now you can live with the consequences."
She turned and made for the door, nails digging into her clenched fists.
"Oh - and Vivian?" She partly turned back to the gob smacked woman, and tilted her head to regard her with unreadable green eyes. "You might want to ask if YOU know who I am, before you issue another order to me again."
She beckoned to her daughter. "Come on Cat. We're leaving. Mrs Cates has a few things to think about."
She turned away, but as she did so she flashed a quick volley at the still stunned woman, further deepening her confusion. * You don't know who I am Vivian - and be very careful you never have cause to find out.*
And with one last gleam of bright green eyes she was gone.
Silence reigned for a minute and then Sherman looked around at his still stunned compatriots and smirked.
"Well. That's put the cat among the pigeons hasn't it?"
Oh - and for the people who are desperate to get to the Sophia/Luke confrontation, it's coming okay? I'm trying to build up dramatic tension here. To quote the Guinness adverts - good things (hopefully) come to those who wait.
There will be a short delay over the weekend as I don't have access at home. See you in a few days. Thanks again - Sigma
Chapter 9
As she had expected they arrived exactly on time. One of the things she had always admired about Matt Donner was his exactitude, so in contrast with her own impetuous nature. And it was in part due to that admiration that she was allowing this meeting to go ahead in the first place. She stopped in place and smoothed her skirt, a brief flash of unwarranted nerves causing her to frown in irritation. Unfinished business always grated. Putting on her most polished smile, she went to greet her guests.
Twenty minutes later she was feeling twice as ruffled and four times as stressed.
"I still can't believe this."
"What is it you can't believe, Viv? Seems pretty straightforward to me."
She turned on the Pack Keeper in irritation.
"This! This whole thing! She, " she gestured abruptly to a poised Sophia, who took a sip of her coffee in obvious impatience, "comes back, after 16 years away, and tell me that firstly she has a daughter who is a, a SEER, of all things."
She put her hands on her hips and glared down at the offending teenager, who gulped and felt the urge to hide behind her Mom until this was all over. This Vivian lady was scary! She breathed out in relief as the focus of that fury turned back to Sherman.
"And you. Sherman. Keeper of the Chronicles. Keeper of the Pack. And for all the time I was Pack leader, you neglected to mention this little fact!?"
"Mention what, Viv?"
"Oh well I don't know. Perhaps the fact that we had a possible seer in our midst. Something we've not had the advantage of , for hhmmm - 250 years? Oh yeah - and that the aforementioned Seer has been seeing portents of our destruction for the LAST TEN YEARS!!"
She glared at him. He merely shrugged, not intimidated.
" I knew it wasn't coming for another few years. And what's the point in worrying about something until you can do something to stop it?"
Vivian just kept glaring at him, eyes narrowed in disgust. Dammed irritating, secretive, blockhead trickster. Sometimes she thought his mother must have been a Coyote.
There was the sound of a throat clearing, and Vivian switched her focus to Matt Donner, who had been mostly sitting in silence for the last twenty minutes.
"Sherman does have a point. I mean - Viv, what would you have done if you had known about it when you were Alpha? What could you have done? Dragged Sophia and Cat back here and put them under house arrest?"
She just stared at him for a moment, before her legs abruptly went weak on her and she collapsed onto the sofa.
"And anyway, I think my daughter might have had something to say about that."
Sophia looked up from her coffee and spoke directly to Vivian for the first time since this farce had begun, her face carefully blank.
"I can guarantee that would have been the case. The only reason we are back now, is because Sherman believes it may be near the foretold time."
"They need to be here Viv. They're a major part of this. In fact I would say they are pivotal to our success or - well, destruction I suppose." The old Keeper fixed his ex-leader with Coyote's inscrutable eye.
Suddenly Vivian just wanted to be anywhere else, away from all this, lying on a beach somewhere, drinking a Martini. God what she would give for Willard to be here, so she could just hand this entire mess over to him. With a sigh she leaned back into the cushions.
"Well, I suppose if we have to deal, we have to. Although you," she pointed a finger at Sherman, "have a lot of explaining to."
He smiled at her blandly.
"And I suppose Sophia and Catriona had better move in here for safe keeping. We don't want to take any chances."
"No."
The bald statement broke the silence. Three heads turned to the couch where Sophia had very carefully put down her coffee cup before rising. Vivian frowned.
"What do you mean 'No'? I outrank you child, and you'll do as I say."
The younger woman breathed in deeply at the unthinking arrogance in the other's tone. Sherman and Matt looked from one to the other like spectators at a tennis match. This ought to be good.
"I said No, Vivian. And I meant exactly what I said. My daughter and I will be staying where we are, in my Father's house. We will be also leaving the town when we require and coming back when we wish. There will be no 'protection' detail. No removal of spark plugs from my car, no accidental problems with our phone lines. I know all the tricks and I will be - upset, if anything should happen to either of us or my father, from anyone within the Pack".
Vivian looked as if she had been hit over the head with a brick.
"How dare you?! Do you realise who I am?"
Sophia looked down on the older woman, noticing the streaks of silver in the golden hair, the fine lines around eyes and mouth that hadn't been there the last time they had seen each other.
"Of course I know who you are. You are the Alpha female of the Wolf Lake Pack. And if I was a denizen of the Wolf Lake Pack I would owe you my obedience. But I'm not. And I have not been for 16 years, not since you and your son essentially forced me to leave. So I owe you no duty - of obedience or submission. You are not my Alpha, Vivian. You made sure of that. Now you can live with the consequences."
She turned and made for the door, nails digging into her clenched fists.
"Oh - and Vivian?" She partly turned back to the gob smacked woman, and tilted her head to regard her with unreadable green eyes. "You might want to ask if YOU know who I am, before you issue another order to me again."
She beckoned to her daughter. "Come on Cat. We're leaving. Mrs Cates has a few things to think about."
She turned away, but as she did so she flashed a quick volley at the still stunned woman, further deepening her confusion. * You don't know who I am Vivian - and be very careful you never have cause to find out.*
And with one last gleam of bright green eyes she was gone.
Silence reigned for a minute and then Sherman looked around at his still stunned compatriots and smirked.
"Well. That's put the cat among the pigeons hasn't it?"